Falling sand texture

Hi,

I am a builder, not a texturer, so go easy on me.

I am building a nightclub that is beneath a pyramid. Only the tip of the pyramid appears above the ground, and it looks like it is the smaller of three pyramids. However, on command from the owner the pyramid rises from beneath the sands to become larger than than the other two pyramids, stopping 10m above the ground, with a suspended dance floor below it.

The rising of the pyramid looks quite impressive, but what would really make it look awesome is sand rolling down its sides onto the ground for a few seconds, stopping about 5 seconds after the pyramid has finished rising (the pyramid rises over 5 seconds, so 10 seconds total for the falling sand animated texture).

So, I need a falling sand texture, similar to sand falling from between fingers, sometimes thick, sometimes thin, and petering out after 10 secs total.

I do have photoshop, but I am a complete novice. For those with experience, is this a mighty project, or something someone could knock up relatively quickly?

If it is complex, is there anyone who would fancy a crack at this for me, for a fee of course?

/\
/ \
/ \
/ \
/___Base__\sand trickling down from here
/ \ corner support struts
__/__dance floor_\__

Between the base of the pyramid and the dance floor could be four fully alpha, phantom prims, that by script would display the falling sand texture as the pyramid rises above ground level. The pyramid stops moving once the dancefloor appears above ground level, and the sand continues to fall, petering out over about 5 seconds.

Vi

Hmmmmm..... This really belongs in the Products Wanted forum, not here. This is where you come for help in figuring out how to make things yourself. It's also more of a scripting challenge, with particles, than a texturing one. A fun challenge, though.

Rolig, if you really read her message there are things that are appropriate to it being posted in textures.

True, Dekka. I didn't say that it had NO texturing component --- just that it was more of a scripting challenge. I wasn't trying to be dismissive, but trying to point to better places to find answers.

If I were doing this, I would probably grab a digital camera, toss some sand on a sheet of white paper, shoot a few pictures, and create a sand textures on transparent backgrounds from them. From my perspective, at least, the sand textures are the easy part. The big challenge in this project is the scripting to make the falling sand look realistic.

Either way, there are better forums .... Scripting Tips or Products Wanted ... to search for a solution.